My Words Are Law

Neighbors (3.1)

"Good afternoon! I brought a customer!" A cheerful voice burst into the cafe after the crisp ringing of the door entry bell, indicating the arrival of newcomers. The three girls turned towards the entrance, eyeing the two males in surprise.

"Oh! Welcome! Is he a friend?" Hana asked curiously as she glanced at Chryses, who politely smiled in her direction.

"Yeah- Oh! You three are here, too?" Tobias raised his brows as he waved at Mia and the rest after spotting them. "We'll sit with them," Tobias informed Honey, and she nodded.

"You're all friends. I see." Hana gazed at Chryses, who was staring at one person in particular. "Would you like to have our Amaryllis?" she asked.

The young male turned towards her, eyes subtly widening, obviously caught by surprise.

Hana laughed. "It's one of our popular desserts." She pointed at the cake in the showcase. "Amaryllis."

Chryses followed her pointer finger and saw a chocolate cake with blueberries on top decorated with white amaryllis flowers. "...I see."

Tobias watched Chryses before ordering his usual. "I'll have my favorite biscuits and Americano."

"Then, I'll get the chocolate cake and Americano," Chryses added.

"Okay. We'll swing by your table later." Hana smiled once again at Chryses.

~~~

"What rotten luck," Samantha muttered as soon as Tobias and Chryses sat with them. At the round table, Mia's childhood friend sat between Samantha and Mia while Chryses sat between Samantha and Amaryllis.

"What a coincidence, huh?" Tobias chuckled as he grinned at everyone. "I met Chryses while I was on my way to go home after enrollment, so I thought why not invite him here? I didn't know you guys were also here!"

Samantha only sipped from her drink.

"I see." Mia awkwardly chuckled as she glanced at Amaryllis, who nibbled on her bread.

"Well, since we all met coincidentally, let's eat together." As usual, Tobias never failed to be painfully unaware of the dreary atmosphere. And when Sir Jesus served both the guys' orders, the atmosphere turned even more awkward.

"Oh, by the way, Chryses ordered the cake named after you, Amaryllis. Hahaha. Isn't it funny?"

The three girls looked at the cake with different, interesting expressions. One's eyes narrowed with a raised brow, one frowned out of curiosity, and one of contemplation.

"I didn't know you like sweets." Samantha huffed, hiding the curl of her lips that lifted in derision behind the act of wiping the corners of her mouth with a tissue.

"My preferences changed." Chryses smiled as he took a sip of his coffee.

"Of course. And besides, my sister's delicacies are the best, so your preferences won't matter in the end. Hahaha!" Tobias interjected, feeling happy to get the conversation going, unaware of the tension in the atmosphere.

"Well, sister Hana's baking really is the best. Did you know she also had a pastry named after Tobias and Mariam?" Mia tried to help, however useless her efforts were. When nobody reacted, she immediately supplied. "Although she took them out because of some unexpected incidents." Then she laughed.

"So this cake must taste the best because it's still on the menu," Chryses said as he took a bite.

"I agree." Mia nodded. At the same time, Tobias dueted, "It almost seems like you have a crush on Amaryllis when you say that. Hahaha."

When the table went silent, he scratched his nape and looked at the faces of his friends. Mia's unreadable face due to mixed emotions was enough to make him realize he said something wrong.

"Kidding! Hahaha! Anyway-"

"Is it that obvious?" Chryses suddenly piped in, looking around with a sheepish smile.